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THE 



CHARACTER OT RUSH, 



AN 



INTRODUCTORY 



TO THE 



COURSE ON THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF MEDICINE. 



PHILADELPHIA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE. 



BY THOMAS D. MITCHELL, M. D, 

Profeisor of Theory and Practice in the Philadelphia College of Medicine, OAid 
Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics in the Medical Depart- 
ment of Transylvania University, in Lexington, Ky. 




PUBLISHED BY THE CL A^8:To V QC .'^/TflT^^s 



V/ 



PHILADELPHIA: 
JOHN H. GIHON, PRINTER, 

TH EAST COMXKR OF SIXTH A>D CHESNUT STREETS. 

1848. 



r 

1 . 

/ 

• THE 



CHARACTER OF RUSH, 



AN 



INTRODUCTORY 



TO THK 



COURSE ON THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF MEDICINE, 



IN THE 



PHILADELPHIA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE. 



BY THOMAS D. MITCHELL, M. D,, 

Profeticrr of Theory and Practice in the Philadelphia College of Medicine, and 
Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics in the Medical Depart- 
ment of Transylvania University, in Lexington, Ky. 



PUBLISHED BY THE CLASS. 



PHILADELPHIA: 
JOHN H. GIHON, PRINTER, 

>ORTH EAST CORNER OF SIXTH AND CHESNUT STREETS. 
1848. 







E-^oz 



Philadelphia College of Medici:ve, JMauch 22, 1848, 

PnoF. T. D. MicTHELi. : 

Dear Sir, — At a late meeting of the students under your instruction, 
the undersigned were appointed a Committee to request, for publication, a copy 
of yuur Introductory Lecture. 

Very respectfully, 

R. J. Kittheuge, N. H. 
W. G. LoMAx, S C. 
L. G. ViNAL, Me. 

D. RuGGLEs, Mass. 

E. B. Hall, N. J. 
T. M. Flint, Pa. 
W. G. Hull, Md. 
T. Christian, Va. 

G. W. Mahkham, Miss. 
T. S. Jones, Ala. 
W. C. Webb, Mo. 
E. DE St.Romes, La. 

J. C. HATHEWAr, B. A. 

Committee. 
J. C. Calhoun, Jh., S. C, Chairman. 
N. R. Moseley, Pa., Secretary. 



To Messrs. Kittredge, Lomax, &c.: 

Gentlemen, — The polite request made by yourselves and others, as a 
Committee from the Medical Class, is cheerfully accorded. The Lecture is at 
your disposal. 

I am very respectfully, &c., 

Thomas D. Mitchell. 
Philadelphia, March 24, 1848. 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 



Delightful, indeed, is the memory of the illustrious dead, 
whose three-score years and ten have been faithfully devoted 
to the cause of humanity. And as we love to cast a lingering 
look upon the western sky, effulgent with the impress of the 
setting sun, so does it elevate the soul with sentiments of true 
sublimity to gaze upon the halo of glory that rests upon the 
tomb of him, who lived, iK)t for himself, but for the world. 

The beholder of God's omnipotence as displayed in the 
wonders of Niagara, in dumb amazement lost, scans the 
mighty picture ; and, for the moment, feels the inspiration of 
the Deity, who holds the thundering cataract in the hollow of 
his hand ; and sceptic though he be, whispers to himself, " my 
Father made it all." And he who, for the first time, ploughs 
the heaving ocean, dashed about in space illimitable, the 
measureless empyrean above, and all around a waste of 
•waters, fathomless, exclaims, " a God is here." But what are 
these, in nature's world of wonders, to the climax of Almighty 
skill, that brougH^to being man, immortal, intellectual man, 
the noblest work of God ? For him the cataract, the ocean 
and the world were made, and he invested, by the glorious 
Architect, with high dominion over all. 

The excellent of our race may well command the admiration, 
love and gratitude of posterity, while time endures. The 
principles of virtue, unlike the stupendous productions of 
nature, have a deathless existence that invests them with 
freshness and vigor, that shall flourish and bloom long after 
the head and the heart that developed them, shall have moul- 
dered in the dust. Where is the American that feels not the 
glow of patriotism warming and expanding his bosom, at 
mention of the name of Washington ; and when think you 



4 THE CHARACTER OF RlfSH. 

will the day dawn in thrice happy America, when it will be 
otherwise? And whose sympathy, all the world over, is un- 
moved when the benevolence oi Howard is the orator's theme? 

The profession which you have chosen, gentlemen, has not 
been deficient in illustrious men, whose genius, talents, profes- 
sional and moral worth, stand out as bright and splendid incen- 
tives to vigorous effort, to reach the hill-top of glory, and to win 
the verdict of "great and good" from an honest posterity, I 
come before you to-night, with a feint sketch of such an example, 
with an imperfect outline of the character of one who has long 
since paid the debt of nature, but whose excellence lives in the 
fond remembrance of thousands, and must by necessity live, 
because in its very essence it is imperishable. 

The Sydenham of America is the theme for the present 
hour ; and what topic could have been selected more befitting 
this occasion, than the character of him, who has with great 
propriety been proclaimed "the father of American medicine ?" 
That he was a member of the first faculty that gave public 
lectures on the various branches of medical science, in these 
United States, is part of our country's history ; and that his 
oral and printed disquisitions gave a new impetus and tone to 
the profession, is equally undeniable. Is it enthusiasm to feel 
a national as well as a state and a city pride, in reference to 
such a man ? Be it so. It is not only pardonable to love the 
name and to cherish the memory of one^hose virtues have 
inspired our veneration, but it is praiseworthy to cultivate 
such feelings. Born almost within hearing distance of the 
spot on which Doctor Rush resided during a large portion of 
his Hfe, and intimately acquainted with his personal worth, 
his private and public character, for many years, I claim to 
know a little more of this great man, than some who have 
presumed to judge him on hearsay evidence, or from a casual 
and imperfect survey of his deportment. That he had faults, 
is only to affirm his descent from our fallen progenitor, and 
that in despite of the illustrious qualities that will cluster 
around his name to the end of time, he was but a man. Yet 
his very failings often served by the power of contrast, to add 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 5 

greater lustre to his intrinsic worth. No splendid heraldry, 
nor potent charm of wealth, prepared his way. Apart from 
all extraneous influence, that oft supplies the place of mind, 
he rose like the towering pyramids of Egypt, so high above 
the pebbles at his feet, as to inspire an almost reverential awe, 
that hid his foibles, with its kindly mantle, from the gaze of men. 
And although a deep-wrought consciousness of his surpassing 
excellence could not turn back the shafts of envy that were 
directed against him, even his enemies were compelled to 
acknowledge his superiority. And at this day where is the 
individual who ventures to amplify the faults of the venerable 
Rush ? If there be such an one in this goodly land, he must 
be sought among the few who were stamped by that master 
spirit with the epithet "ungrateful pupils;" some poor, worn- 
out, withered remnant of a man, shorn of every thing that 
appertains to the loveliness of humanity, scathed by the blight- 
ing blast of public indignation, an outcast, lonely, powerless : 
whose jaundiced eye fails to discern in all the moral and in- 
tellectual horizon around him a single spot, untinged with his 
own characteristic dye. 

Yet Rush had his failings. He was a splendid mass of 
precious metal, with here and there a superficial speck, which 
by contrast gave beauty to the whole ; but which, as it rolled 
down the hill of time, grew brighter and more bright by cease- 
less attrition, till at length every blemish has been well nigh 
effaced, and the delighted beholder now gazes, with unmingled 
satisfaction, on the almost pure, unsullied gold. Illustrious 
man ! had he lived in the days of the heathen philosophy, he 
would have been deified for his virtues, and his monument 
would have honored some conspicuous niche in an idol temple. 
But he terminated his career of mortality in a civilized land, 
and to this hour, no fitting monument commemorates his 
worth, or bears records of his talents. Yet these shall not be 
forgotten. In the hearts of his pupils, a monument has been 
erected purer and more lasting than the virgin marble, and the 
fire that glowed on the altar of their affections has warmed and 



6 THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 

animated their sons, and diffused its genial influence wherever 
the science of medicine has been cultivated. 

It is not to be inferred from what has been said, nor from 
any thing yet to be uttered, that the speaker endorses all the 
sentiments of Dr. Rush. He scorns a blind adhesion to any 
man or to any system, yet he feels entirely free to gather instruc- 
tion from every available source, in order to impress the pupil 
with just ideas of the magnitude of the profession in which he 
has embarked. Nor is it any part of the present effort to 
attempt the analysis of what has been called " the system of 
Rush." To make such a use of his interesting character, as 
may prompt the student to a virtuous ambition to serve his 
country and promote the happiness of society, as well as to 
advance the interests of the profession, is the full scope of my 
present purpose. 

In the further prosecution of the pleasing task before me, I 
shall endeavor to exhibit the venerable Rush, as concisely as I 
can, in the following aspects, viz. : As a man of science ; as a 
patriot and citizen ; as a writer ; as a teacher ; as a friend of 
virtue, religion and good order ; as a practitioner of medicine ; 
and lastly, as a pattern for candidates for the medical profession. 

In noticing Dr. Rush, as a man of science, I may refer, 
with great propriety, to the early history of the^j parent school 
of medicine in America, in which he was the first teacher of 
Chemistry. At the time of his selection for that important 
post, he was in Edinburg, whither he had repaired to complete 
his medical education ; and such men as Morgan, and Shippen, 
and Kuhn, at whose instance he was chosen, were too com- 
petent to judge of qualification, to commit a mistake in a matter 
so important to their novel enterprise. They knew their man ; 
and hence we find in the papers of the day, an imposing an- 
nouncement of the arrival in this country of the new Professor, 
and Ihe apparatus procured by him for the use of the College. 
I have examined with considerable care, a manuscript copy of 
the course of chemistry, given by Dr. Rush, while he filled 
that department, and am satisfied that he did the subject ample 
justice. 



THE CHARACTER OP RUSH. 7 

The early predilection of Rush for chemical science seems 
to have impressed his mind, most deeply, with the important 
bearing of that science on the theory and practice of medicine; 
and hence it occurred, that in all his chemical references while 
Professor of the Institutes and Practice, he was uniformly cor- 
rect, according to the existing state of the science. Not long 
before his decease, the revolution effected by the introduction 
of the chloridic theory and the experiments with the new 
metals, was claiming the attention of our scientific men ; and 
failed not to rouse the enthusiasm of Rush, who evinced a 
deep interest in the all absorbing topics. 

But I may, with great propriety, refer you to all the writings 
of this distinguished man, and especially to his volume of 
Moral and Philosophical Essays, for proof of his love and 
zeal for science. He carried those qualities wherever he went, 
and laid under contribution, every body and every thing, to yield 
some additional item of useful information. To indolence, both 
mental and physical, he was a stranger : but, like the untiring 
bee that gathers honey from every variety of flower, he culled 
something valuable from sources the most insignificant and 
unpromising. Hence it was, that he became so well versed in 
the science of human nature, and so perfectly understood the 
springs and secret workings of the human heart. 

The admirable essay on the Education proper in a Repub- 
lic, shows most abundantly, that its author possessed, not only 
much scientific knowledge, but that he was ardently desirous to 
have all the youth in the land instructed, at an early period, in 
mathematics, natural history and chemistry. In one of his 
introductory lectures, he expressed a hope, that the time would 
soon arrive, when the elementary principles of medical science, 
to a certain extent, should enter into all our systems of public 
education. As additional evidence of the love of science that 
actuated the subject of these remarks, it is proper to say, that 
in a very important sense, he was the founder and father of 
Dickinson College, in this state ; that by his influence mainly, 
if not exclusively, the distinguished Dr. Nesbit left Sco'tland, to 
become its President. 



8 THE CHARACTER OK RUSH. 

But what shall we say of Dr. Rush as a patriot and citizen? 
This enlightened audience would smile, perhaps, if I were to 
tell them, that he was among the earliest advocates of Ameri- 
can Independence, for almost every school-boy has heard of 
this. Who among you has not beheld his signature on the 
immortal document that first proclaimed the disenthralment of 
the colonies from despotic vassalage ? Facts like these need 
no interpreter, no commentator. They tell their import to 
the world, and will do so while time shall endure. The man 
who loves his country for its civil and religious liberties, and 
who is ready at any hour to sacrifice life and property and 
character to perpetuate the boon, is indeed a patriot, and such 
an one, too, as the eye seldom rests upon in these days of 
onward march and improvement. We are most truly a patriotic 
people, if love of office and fondness for the loaves and fishes 
are to be the measure of our patriotism. But when a disin- 
terestedness that perils life and all that man presses to his heart 
as dearer than life, is to be the lest of patriot zeal and fidelity, 
alas ! how many are there who if weighed in the balances 
would be found wanting ! 

The purity of Rush's patriotism is apparent, not merely from 
the relative position and strength of the colonies and the mother 
country, but also from the fact that his situation as a public 
teacher, and his engagements as a physician presented an 
adequate plea for declining to take an active part in the diffi- 
culties which then blackened our country's horizon. But he 
was impelled by motives of the most exalted nobility. He felt 
that commanding talents were needful in the councils of the 
nation, at such a momentous crisis ; and therefore he was not 
listless to the call of his country, but hastened to her rescue, 
at the peril of life, and all the glittering, youth-inspiring pros- 
pects that environed his pathway. And who knows but that 
the towering spirit of Arago and Lamartine that but yesterday 
burst the fetters of despotism in France, to give unshackled 
freedom to her impulsive millions, caught the hallowed fire 
from the altar of American liberty, kindled by the quenchless 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 9 

ardor of the spirits heaven sent to meet our own tremendous 
crisis ? 

Nor was it only while engaged in the fearful struggle that 
stamped independence on America, that the patriotism of Rush 
was coi spicu us. Trace his career through a long life, even 
to its last agony, and you behold a devotion to his country's 
weal, that lias seldom, if ever, been surpassed. In 178G, but 
a very few years after the recognition of our independence, 
we find him zealously occupied in efforts to strengthen the 
foundations of that independence and to perpetuate its bless- 
ings to the last generation. In the same year, he addressed 
to the legislature of his own state, his memorable plan for the 
general diffusion of learning, which led the way for some of 
the most important educational provisions that have ever 
been devised or adopted in any country. So valuable and yet 
concise are his leading arguments in favor of general education, 
that I venture to quote them here. "Education," says he, "is 
friendly to religion, inasmuch as it assists in removing preju- 
dice, superstition and enthusiasm; in promoting just notions of 
Deity, and in enlarging our knowledge of his works. It is 
favorable to liberty, also, for this can flourish and endure only 
in the society of knowledge. Without learning, men are in- 
capable of appreciating their rights, as they should, and if 
learning be confined to the few, liberty can neither be equal 
nor universal. It promotes just ideas of laws and government. 
It is friendly to good manners. It promotes agriculture, the 
great^basis of national wealth and happiness. It tends to the 
improvement of manufactures, which have been multiplied 
and perfected, in proportion to the cultivation of the arts and 
sciences." 

These and similar declarations which abound in the writings 
of Dr. Rush, prove, incontrovertibly, that he was incited by 
the truest, purest patriotism. In truth, his chief aim, in all 
his essays, seems to have been to perpetuate the blessings of 
his beloved country: and to do this, by placing them on the 
most enduring basis, viz. — the virtue and intelligence of the 
people. 



10 THE CHARACTER OF RUSH, 

What prompted him, think you, when the entire world was 
wrapped in a sleep as lethargic as the slumber of the grave, 
in reference to the ravages of intemperance, to pen that im- 
perishable article on the abuse of ardent spirits, whose electric 
power rocked the moral frame-work of society to its centre ? 
That paper, merited to be stereotyped in letters of gold and to 
be imbedded in the vault of heaven, to be illumined by the 
glittering beams of the glowing firmament, that its pure 
maxims might be read and known of all the countless millions 
of earth. It contains all the radical principles of the glorious 
reformation that has since been achieved; and for this alone, 
he merits the warmest thanks of his country and of the world. 
Think you, that he courted popularity in this bold effort, or 
that he feared the frowns and sneers of an indignant public ? 
Why, sirs, the act was an open defiance of popular sentiment, 
and a deep-toned denunciation of the fashionable vice of the 
day. He knew all this, and he felt it too, and if any can 
deduce from that heroic effort the feintest evidence that it was 
not inspired by the loftiest patriotism and the purest benevo- 
lence, I envy not his powers of analysis. Most happy for our 
country would it be, if the popularity seekers of the present 
day could be induced to notice this splendid example and 
attempt its imitation. It was love of country that prompted 
him, or he had no motive. He saw the black and desolating 
wand of intemperance waving frightfully over the land, and 
in the true spirit of patriotism he sounded the alarm. Nor did 
he sound in vain. The whole country, yea, even the entire 
civilized earth was roused by his appeal. The danger was 
measurably realized, and the remedy is at work. 

Let us attend for a few moments to the character of Dr. Rush 
as a writer. And here it is well to make a distinciion, because 
there is one in fact that constitutes an important difference. 
We mean here, to distinguish between writing as a manual 
exercise, and writing as a mental effort, and in respect of both 
we have something to say touching the subject of these re- 
marks. No man abhorred a careless, illegible autograph, more 
deeply than did Dr. Rush. He was wont to speak of it with 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 11 

pointed emphasis in his public lectures, nor did he overlook it 
in his published essays. Such was the importance he attached 
to a fair and legible hand-writing, that he placed it among the 
leading items of an education preparatory to the study of 
medicine, lu page 171 of his interesting volume of Introduc- 
tory Lectures, he has the following pertinent remarks, which 
commend themselves to every member of our profession : — 
"Considering how often we are obliged to convey our advice 
to patients by means of letters, and how many medicines we 
prescribe in words which are not in common use : remember 
ing, moreover, how injurious a mistake in a single word or 
letter may be, or even the neglect of our prescriptions from 
inability to read them, the writing a fair and legible hand 
should be regarded as part, not only of the learning, but of the 
morality of a physician." There is vastly more of sound 
philosophy in this short extract, than appears on its surface. 
The mind of man is reflected on every thing he does and says. 
It appears in the figure of his house, in the color and fashion 
of his dress. And think you, that it stands not forth con- 
spicuously in his hand-writing? So dreamed not Lavater, 
when he recorded the memorable sentiment," he who writes an 
illegible hand, is rapid, and often impetuous in his judgment." 

You have all, gentlemen, I doubt not, marked the fac similie 
of Dr. Rush's signature on the printed Declaration of Indepen- 
dence. A plainer name is not to be found on that document. 
And if you examine his letters, even those of his old age, the 
same distinct and intelligible manner greets the eye. 

But if we regard writing as a mental effort, we find in Dr. 
Rush a model which should ever be present to the physician 
who desires to accomplish important and lasting results by his 
pen. Some have wondered that the work on the Diseases of 
the Mind, and the writings generally of Dr. Rush, should be 
so easily comprehended, not only by physicians, but by reading 
men in all ranks of society. But, gentlemen, the secret lies 
just here. Rush wrote for the good of mankind, and not as 
do many of our profession, for the mere purpose of making a 
display. Hence he handled his subject in the common sense 



18 THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 

Style of one who understood his business, and felt that no 
gaudy trappings nor tinsel gewgaws were required to give 
force and efficiency to argument. His style was very much 
the language of Nature, and therefore you find, but seldom, 
a far-fetched, and almost never, a new coined word in his 
publications. For this reason his vokmie of Essays and his 
Diseases of the Mind will be read with deep interest long 
after you and I shall have gone to the grave. Indeed, such is 
my estimate of the volnme of Essays, that I do not believe a 
much better service could be rendered to the rising generation 
(except in the circulation of the Bible) than the republication 
of it, every twenty years, for gratuitous distribution. 

The charge of plagiarism has been preferred against Dr. 
Rush, by more than one individual, yet with less evidence of 
its truthfulness than would apply to other public teachers. 
What Professor of medicine ever occupied his desk an hour 
without involving himself in the charge of plagiarism, for that 
very performance.^ But listen to a witness, who yet lives and 
enjoys the confidence of his brethren, and mark his affirmation 
in respect of the book on the Diseases of the Mind, which some, 
from lackof common sense, have venturedtodenounce asaweak 
and worthless performance, abounding in plagiarisms. "During 
my casual attendance on the lectures of the late Professor 
Brown, of Edinburgh," says Dr. Francis, of New York, •' my 
national feelings were highly gratified by hearing the successor 
of Dugald Stewart affirm, that this work on the diseases of the 
mind, was full of instruction, and exhibited great originality." 
It is needless to add, gentlemen, that one such testimonial 
as this, is of more weight than a thousand frivolous ob- 
jections raised by inflated vanity and inglorious envy. And 
yet, we presume to quote the testimony of a distinguished 
foreigner known to all of you, as editor of the Encyclopedia 
Jimericana,a.nd who, from the fact of being an alien, must be 
regarded as free from all the prejudices that have agitated the 
medical mind of our country. Dr. Lieber thus speaks of Rush : 
" From the result of his individual experience and observation, 
he established more principles, and added more facts to the 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 13 

science of medicine than all who preceded him in his native 
country." 

We are in the next place to look at Dr. Rush, as a Teacher 
or Professor. 

In a former part of this address, reference was made to the 
ability with which Dr. Rush discharged his duty as Professor 
of Chemistry in the first medical school in this country. His 
success in that department established his reputation as a 
popular instructor, as one apt to teach. The latter quality is 
indispensable. A man may be profoundly learned, and be 
destitute of the power of imparting knowledge to others. 
One of the feeblest teachers I have ever known enjoyed the 
reputation of very extensive acquaintance with general science 
and with his own department in particular. But such was the 
opacity of his mind, such the deranged condition of his mate- 
rials, that all his efforts to teach, served only to make "con- 
fusion worse confounded." Two features, at least, are essen- 
tial to the character of a good teacher. The first is a due 
acquaintance with the subject ; the second is an aptness to 
impart that knowledge to others. It was the felicitous union 
of these qualities that constituted Dr. Rush one of the most 
pleasing and intelligent lecturers that ever adorned a medical 
school, and that led to his transfer to the important chair 
which he filled with such distinguished ability, to the end of 
his life. 

Of Dr. Rush's manner of lecturing, it is impossible to convey 
an adequate idea. His voice was one of sweetest euphony, 
adapting itself most easily to the variety of sentiment that pre- 
sented, and eminently calculated to rivet the attention of hisclass. 
Although he read almost every word, and occupied the silting 
posture throughout his course, with only now and then an 
exception, he was unquestionably the most eloquent and in- 
structive teacher I have ever heard. When he desired to give 
peculiar and unwonted emphasis and power to something he 
regarded as specially important, he rose from his chair, and 
with inexpressible dignity, pronounced the sentiment. Weil 
do I remember, when he was portraying in vivid color* 



14 THE CHARACTER OP RUSH. 

the vast importance of just principles in medicine, the electric 
flash that flitted through the class, on this change of position. 
Rising from his chair, throwing back his spectacles, and eleva- 
ting his right hand, he exclaimed, with a pathos never to be 
forgotten, '• If my grave may be honored with a column to tell 
the spot where my dust reposes, I ask no better epitaph than 
this, ' he lived and died an advocate for principles in medicine.' " 

There has never lived a physician who contended more 
earnestly for the necessity and usefulness of principles in medi- 
cine, than Dr. Rush. He has been stigmatized as a theorist. 
But pray, what is a theorist, but one who thinks? And where 
is the practitioner, be he invested with the doctorate or pro- 
fessorate, or degraded to the level of nostrum-monger, who 
does not theorise, in some sense or other, touching the efficiency 
of remedies? The facts of medicine are indescribably impor- 
tant, but their value is wholly dependent on their connexion 
with theory or principles. The most experienced grandmother 
in America, whose reputation for the cure of infantile diseases 
with bitter herbs, is so frequently lauded, is as certainly a 
theorist as the most renowned system maker in medicine that 
ever lived. Naked facts are but the skeleton of the animal, 
which remains passive and inanimate, except as it is vitalised 
and moved, by the all-potent influence of principles, which 
constitute the muscle, nerve and vascular system of the fabric. 
Of what avail are insulated or collected facts to the mariner, 
aside from the science, the theory, the principles based on the 
discovery of the compass ? And what but the wise adaptation 
of principles to facts, has brought the old and new worlds, as 
well as the remotest spots in our own country, almost to juxta 
position, through the instrumentality of the steam-ship and 
the lightning flash of the telegraph ? 

I verily believe that no man has done half so much to estab- 
lish the just relation between principles and experience, as Dr. 
Rush. And although many of his views in relation to this 
cardinal topic have been ridiculed by men of various caliber, 
in this country and in Europe, I can point you, and shall do it 
in my course of lectures, to facts proving incontestibly the 



THJE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 15 

adoption of those identical views by some of the most eminent 
physicians of Great Britain, among whom I name Elliotson, 
Stokes, and Graves. In this connexion, allow me to commend 
to your careful perusal, the introductory lecture of Dr. Rush, 
delivered in November, 1791, on the necessary connexion 
between observation and reasoning in medicine; and as you 
read it, forget, for a moment, that it was written nearly sixty 
years ago, and you will be very apt to regard it as a master- 
piece of some towering intellect of the nineteenth century. It 
teaches most truly, that correct practice is not necessarily de- 
pendent on mere locality, nor on facts accumulated by long 
experience, but that sound principles are absolutely indispen- 
sable to rational and successful practice. 

But as a teacher of medicine. Dr. Rush, more than any who 
had preceded him, felt and acted under the inspiration of the spirit 
of improvement. He was not one of your in statu quo men, 
but in the phraseology of the West, he believed in going ahead. 
As evidence of the zeal with which he inculcated this feeling, 
I quote the closing paragraphs of his lecture on the causes 
which have retarded the progress of medicine, written forty-five 
years ago : " If I have not removed any part of the rubbish 
which surrounded the fabric of our science, nor suggested any 
thing better in its place, I feel a consolation in believing, that 
I have taught many of your predecessors to do both, by ex- 
citing in them a spirit of inquiry, and a disposition to contro- 
vert old and doubtful opinions by the test of experiment. I 
have only to request you to imitate their example. Think, 
read and observe. Observe, read and think for yourselves." 
And be it known to every pupil of the Philadelphia College 
of Medicine, that the same free, untrammelled spirit of inquiry 
reigns here. We beg of you, not to receive implicitly as true, 
any doctrine we may inculcate, merely on our authority. We 
aim at imparting truth and only truth, and yet we may err. 
Nothing short of a scrupulous examination of every position, 
can justify you in giving it a place in your medical creed. 
While we cherish virtue, as first and fairest of the trio, that 
stamps with imperishable glory the proud flag of our country, 



16 THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 

we must not forget, that independence, though last, is not least 
in the motto, that waves in triumph in the home of the brave 
and the land of the free. 

That Dr. Rush was not so immovably wedded to favorite 
notions as some have asserted, is obvious from the well known 
fact in his history, touching the yellow fever, that formerly de- 
solated this beautiful city. He was once known as the fearless 
advocate of the doctrine of contagion, and at a period when 
that view was generally prevalent. But a more extended 
acquaintance with facts, and a more philosophical apprehen- 
sion of the essential nature of the disease, forced him from his 
position; and in the face of a large niajority of the profession, 
he felt it his duty to contend for the doctrine of non-contagion. 
For this change of opinion, though evidently based on a deep 
and well-grounded conviction, he was compelled to meet the 
sneers and neglect of many of his brethren, added to which 
was a very undesirable share of public indignation. 

The public teaching of -Dr. Rush was not circumscribed by 
the confines of the science of medicine. He availed himself of 
every suitable occasion to urge the importance of virtuous habits, 
of good morals, of gentlemanly demeanor, of temperance, and 
all the qualities calculated to enhance a physician's usefulness 
in society. Who ever heard from his lips the vulgar jest, the 
indecent allusion, the profane sneer? Not one, of all the 
thousands who ever sat within the sound of his voice. Had 
he been an infidel at heart, as some have falsely insinuated, 
he was too polite, too well indoctrinated in the principles of 
common sense and too sensitive himself, to permit an allusion 
to drop from his desk, that might pollute and vitiate the moral 
sense. Alas, that his mantle did not rest on all his pupils ! 

It was the decided sentiment of Dr. Rush, that the period of 
pupilage was, for the most part, too limited; that the welfare 
of the profession, the elevation of its character, and the good 
of the community, demanded that students should attend three 
full courses of lectures^ paying, however, for no more than two. 
In accordance with this opinion, was his advice publicly and 
privately given in my hearing, time and again. And, when a 



THB CHARACTER OF RUSH. 17 

candidate, not recognised by h\m because concealed in th« 
green-box, met his interrogatories with special promptness, 
thereby making the impression of a clear and full understand- 
ing of the subject, he would inquire, " Sir, are you not a three 
course student?" and on healing an affirmative response, his 
deep-felt gratification was evinced in the warm-hearted strains 
of approbation that followed. As a teacher, he cherished the 
very natural desire, that his labors might educe the best pos- 
sible results. Hence his anxiety to prolong the course of study, 
that what the student attempted to learn, might be acquired 
in the most perfect manner. And who that looks abroad into 
the profession at this day, does not perceive the increasing 
necessity for a revival of the sentiments of the lamented Rush, 
in reference to medical education ? 

It would be a difficult task, to point out the principal sources 
of the success and popularity of Rush as a teacher. It could 
not be found, simply, in the instruction imparted, though 
valuable beyond price, and clothed as it ever was with the 
most bewitching eloquence. The sprightly sallies of his vivid 
imagination, his pleasing and instructive anecdotes, the candor 
and integrity that were constantly apparent, all these were 
insufficient to solve the enigma. What then, you inquire, 
gentlemen, what was the secret? I answer, that language 
cannot give a satisfactory response. There was a sort of 
magic influence about the man ; a something in every look 
and word and thought, that enlivened, warmed and even 
electrified. It was next to impossible to be passive under his 
instructions; and I risk nothing in affirming, that no teacher 
ever had the thinking powers of his hearers more absolutely 
within his grasp. Pupils were compelled to meditate, reason 
and judge for themselves, and the habit thus formed by daily 
practice for several consecutive months, may serve to explain 
the fact, that in no similar portion of our country's history was 
so much useful and original matter issued from the press, as 
during the last twenty years of the life of Dr. Rush. At no 
period before nor since, were experimental essays exhibited 
by candidates for the doctorate, to such an extent, as during 

c 



IS THB CHARACTER OF RUSH. 

the memorable era, in which the school enjoyed the labi o 
this excellent teacher. 

But, I name as an important iten>, in attempting to account 
for the commanding influence of Rush over the minds of his 
pupils, the well known fact, that they loved him even to vene- 
ration. There may have been exceptions, yet for the most 
part, he was regarded with an attachment, almost more than 
parental. They believed his statements to be true, because 
they were conscious that he could not descend so low as to 
deceive intentionally. He scorned to practice deception. His 
soul rose above such pusilanimity. He felt too tenderly the 
pressure of responsibility that rested on him, thus to trifle, not 
only with his pupils, but with the untold thousands to be en- 
trusted to their care. 

I am next to exhibit Dr. Rush, as a friend of virtuey religion 
and goodorder. And here, gentlemen, I mightrest contented with 
reference to the bare eulogy pronounced by the late Dr. Ramsay, 
of South Carolina, on this star of the new world. This able 
writer has depicted, in glowing colors, the habitual, practical 
piety of the subject of his eulogy ; his familiar and conversant 
reference to the holy scriptures •, his conspicuous, every-day 
love of religion, and his unsullied practice of the christian 
virtues. " It would seem," says Ramsay, "as though he had 
been trained, in early life, for both worlds." And yet, there 
were not wanting those who endeavored to sully the enviable 
fame of this good man, by asserting that he was not a christian. 
That is a point, however, not to be settled here. It is for a 
higher tribunal than this earth can erect, to decide such grave 
matters. But, if we may lawfully judge of the tree by its 
fruit, and if the habitual exercise of the noblest virtues may 
be regarded as a faithful index of the state of the heart and 
affections, we shall despair of finding a specimen of practical 
Christianity, if we cannot educe it from the character of Rush. 

It was well known in Philadelphia, that Dr. Rush more 
frequently attended public worship, than, perhaps, any other 
physician ; and that, too, long after it was at all necessary to 
resort to stratagem or trick, to secure popular favor, and thus 



TU£ CHARACTER OF RUSH. ID 

to increase business. He held a seat in several churches at 
the same time, so that when prevented from attendance at the 
place for which he had a preference, he might drop in at 
another, and thus, by his presence and example, evince his 
regard for religious institutions. 

But the love of order, for which Dr. Rush was so remark- 
able, must not be overlooked. So high a place did it hold in 
his estimation, that it grew, almost, to a passion. It was seen 
in his person, his dress, the humble vehicle in which he made 
his visits of mercy, his form of writing prescriptions, his office, 
his library, and every thing about or belonging to him. It 
was obvious too, in the pointed severity with which he rebuked 
the disorder so prevalent in the shops of medical practitioners. 
" When I visit a physician's office," said he, " and find every 
thing out of place, pill boxes and bottles, books and papers 
lying pell mell together, I am compelled to infer the confusion 
and disarrangement of the owner's mind." And who, gentle- 
men, can fail to perceive the fitness of the inference ? 

But what shall I say of Xhe punctuality of Dr. Rush? In 
one of his valedictories to a class of medical graduates, he in- 
troduces a noble statesman of England, who had so high a 
sense of the moral obligation oi punctuality, that he once said, 
"had I agreed to meet one of the poorest of my tenants, at a 
fixed moment, in a remote corner of my woodlands, only for 
the purpose of playing at push-pin, no consideration could 
induce me to disappoint him." Nor was Dr. Rush less punc- 
tilious in more important matters. I heard him deliver three 
courses of lectures, the last of which was in his sixty-eighth 
year, and I never knew him to vary five minutes from the 
regular hour, for appearing at his desk. Indeed, he rarely 
failed a single minute. He held that the good eff'ects of punc- 
tuality made it a virtue ; while the neglect or disregard of it, 
was followed with the consequences of a tnce. In his consul- 
tations, he was noted for most scrupulous exactness-, and Pro- 
fessor Francis affirms, in his eulogy, "that in thirty years of 
service as physician to the Pennsylvania Hospital, he was 
never known to vary two minutes, from the fixed hour of at- 



20 THE CHARACTER OV RUSH. 

tendance." *^ His punctualiti/," says Professor Francis," added 
to a judicious arrangement of time for naultifarious occupa- 
tions, secured to him leisure enough for the publication of 
those works which have given celebrity to his name, and to 
the school of which he was so distinguished an ornament." 

Of Dr. Rush, as a medical practitioner. Did time permit, I 
could not more satisfactorily exhibit the character of Dr. Rush, 
as a practitioner of the healing art, than by reading a paper, 
entitled, "./i narrative of the state of body and mind of the 
author, during the prevalence of the 7/ el low fever of 1793, in 
Philadelphia.^' Let me entreat you to peruse that unique 
document, as you will find it in volume third of his Medical 
Inquiries, at page 300. It is an epitome of the entire charac- 
ter of its great author, and is alone sufficient to perpetuate his 
memory to the latest generation. Its conclusion is so full of 
that humility which is above all price, that I quote it in his 
own words, to show the feelings of his heart, in view of the. 
terrible pestilence through which he had passed, with com- 
parative safety. "But wherewithal," says the venerable 
writer, "shall I come before the great Father and Redeemer of 
men, and what shall I render to him for the issue of my lifej 
from the grave?" 

"Here, all language fails; 
Come, then, expressive silence, muse his praise," 

That Dr. Rush had enemies, in the profession, as well as out 
of it, especially during the prevalence of the epidemic already 
noticed, is well known. This unhappy contingency was, 
perhaps, unavoidable. He was, pre-eminently, a reflecting 
man; he could not, and would not abandon principles, in the 
hurry of business. It was, therefore, impossible, as he has 
remarked in one of his papers, to consult with every prac- 
tioner around him, to advantage. He knew that the dissimi- 
larity of views was so great, that there could be no useful 
approximation, and hence it happened that he frequently 
declined to hold consultations vviih certain members of the pro- 
fession, of most respectable standing. Hence the jealousy and 
envy and hostility that pursued him in some instances, with a 



THE CHARACTER OF RUSH. 21 

zeal worthy of a better cause, and which, at the time of his 
death, had a party in the city of Philadelphia. 

In the sick chamber, the loveliness of the character of Rush 
found its climax. It was there that the golden chain of attach- 
ment was forged, that seemed to be stronger than death. He 
was kindness, gentleness and affection personified ; and with 
these he won the confidence and love and gratitude of the 
thousands who were the spontaneous champions of his charac- 
ter and fame, while living; who wept in crowds at his bier 
when dead, and followed in the sorrowing multitude that bore 
his remains to the narrow house with aching hearts and weep- 
ing eyes, that spoke his worth in the expressive accents of 
unutterable grief. 

Like Boerhaave of old, his American archoetype appropriated 
with sacred care, the avails of his Sabbath day's services, 
to the cause of the poor and needy. And in addition, he 
visited thousands who could not possibly remunerate him, not 
only during the prevalence of a desolating epidemic, but at all 
times. Had he pursued his profession, simply for the sake of 
amassing a fortune, he had ample opportunity for becoming 
immensely rich. And yet, notwithstanding the extent of his 
practice and the frugality of his mode of living, and the general 
good management of his domestic concerns, he left behind him 
but little more than enough to enable his family to maintain their 
usual position in the community. He did not die in the strict 
and techical sense of the term, a wealthy man. But he died 
full of honors and left to his family, to his country, and to the 
be world, a character and a fame, more to valued thang old ; 
yea so precious that worlds are too poor to purchase it. 

Finally, I am to speak of Dr. Rush, us a pattern for candi- 
dates for the medical profession. This, gentlemen, you will 
perceive to be the practical application of all that has been 
said. The premises have been stated and Illustrated, mainly 
in reference to the inferential bearing of the whole on those 
who are about to become constituent parts of the profession. 
With feeble powers, indeed, has the picture been drawn, but 
I trust that the resemblance to the original has been sufficiently 



92 THE CHARACTER OF R9SH. 

Striking to awaken in your bosoms, that cordial esteem which 
is due to the great and the good. 

There is one important feature in the character of Dr. Rush, 
that should never be forgotten. To him, every place was a 
school, every one with whom he conversed, was in some way 
or other, a source of instruction. Never was he without a 
book, at home or abroad : for when the printed or the written 
volume was not at hand, he gazed on the wide-spread book of 
nature, with delight and profit, looking through nature up to 
nature's God. 

1 would stimulate the youngest of my audience to industry 
and perseverance, by a simple reference to the facts, that ere 
he attained his fifteenth year, the indefatigable Rush was a 
graduate of Princeton College in New Jersey; that the follow- 
ing six years of his career were devoted to the study of medi- 
cine in this country, during which period, he translated the 
Aphorisms of Hippocrates, and began to keep a note book 
of remarkable occurrences, which he continued to the end of 
his life ; and that from this record has been obtained the only 
authentic account of the yellow fever that first appeared in 
Philadelphia, in 1762, at which time he was scarcely seventeen 
years of age ; that after all these eiforts, he spent two years in 
Edinburg in most laborious study, and took his medical degree 
in that city, in 176S. 

Such was the foundation on which the fair and splendid su- 
perstructure, of which I have exhibited a very imperfect out- 
line, rose to its lofty height. I love to ponder on the character 
of such a man, to cherish every reminiscence of his worth, and 
to hold up the beau ideal of moral, intellectual and professional 
greatness, for the imitation of all posterity. 

" Long, long may the heart with such mem'ries be fill'd, 
Like the vase from which roses have oft been distill 'd ; 
You may break into pieces the vase, if you will, 
But the scent of the roses will cling to it still." 

Would you lay a foundation in early life, for fortune and sub- 
stantial greatness, take for your pattern the prince of American 
physicians. Follow his example, as students enlisted for life, 



THK CHARACTER OF RUSH. ft 

in the cause of medical science. Would you be respected and 
loved by a nation, and have your name to go down to pos- 
terity, with the blessings of thousands resting upon you, 
imitate the virtues, the purity of character, that have crowned 
him with ever during honors. 

Gentlemen, I have discharged my duty. I have placed 
before you, one of the most perfect characters, ever known in 
our profession. I have fondly hoped, that the charms of moral 
and professional excellence would win your love, and stimu 
late you to tread in his footsteps. Nor will I entertain a 
doubt that you will fail to estimate the obligations that press 
upon you, to keep steadily in view, the high, the glorious 
standard that has this night been erected before you. 



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